Memory span and general intelligence: A latent-variable approach

Colom, Roberto; Abad, Francisco; Rebollo, Irene; Shih, Pei Chun

doi:10.1016/j.intell.2005.05.006

Cited by 146 publications

(130 citation statements)

References 28 publications

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“…The Gf-WM correlations are generally higher when the relations are examined at the level of factor scores, composite scores, or latent variables. To illustrate, correlations ranging from .59 to .89 have been reported in studies by Ackerman, Beier and Boyle (2002), Colom, Abad, Rebollo and Shih (2005), Colom, Flores-Mendoza and Rebollo (2003), Colom, Rebollo, Palacios, Juan-Espinosa and Kyllonen (2004), Colom and Shih (2004), Conway, et al (2002), Conway, Kane and Engle (2003), Kyllonen and Christal (1990), Suss, Oberaurer, Wittmann, Wilhelm and Schulze (2002), , and Wilhelm and Oberaurer (2006), and reported a median correlation of .72 across 14 different data sets.…”

Section: Results Inmentioning

confidence: 93%

Contextual analysis of fluid intelligence

2008

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The nature of fluid intelligence was investigated by identifying variables that were, and were not, significantly related to this construct. Relevant information was obtained from three sources: reanalyses of data from previous studies, a study in which 791 adults performed storage-plusprocessing working memory tasks, and a study in which 236 adults performed a variety of working memory, updating, and cognitive control tasks. The results suggest that fluid intelligence represents a broad individual difference dimension contributing to diverse types of controlled or effortful processing. The analyses also revealed that very few of the age-related effects on the target variables were statistically independent of effects on established cognitive abilities, which suggests most of the age-related influences on a wide variety of cognitive control variables overlap with age-related influences on cognitive abilities such as fluid intelligence, episodic memory, and perceptual speed.The finding that nearly all cognitive variables are positively related to one another has been described as one of the most replicated results in psychology (cf. Deary, 2000), and one of the most replicated results in research on aging and cognition is that a very large number of cognitive variables are negatively related to adult age (e.g., Salthouse, 2001a;2004;Salthouse, Atkinson & Berish, 2003;Salthouse & Davis, 2006;Salthouse & Ferrer-Caja, 2003). Interestingly, these two sets of results are linked because the degree to which a given cognitive variable is related to other cognitive variables (as reflected by the variable's loading on the first principal component in a principal components analysis) has been found to predict the magnitude of the age correlation on the variable (e.g., Salthouse, 2001a,b, c). To illustrate, in an analysis of 30 different data sets, Salthouse (2001a) found a median rank-order correlation of .80 between a variable's loading on the first principal component and the absolute magnitude of the variable's correlation with age. Another intriguing outcome of these analyses was that the variables with the strongest associations with other variables and the strongest associations with age were frequently measures of reasoning or fluid intelligence (Gf).Relations among cognitive variables are often represented in terms of an organizational structure based on the patterns of correlations. There is considerable agreement that a particularly meaningful correlation-based organization is a hierarchical structure, with observed variables at the lowest level, various cognitive abilities at intermediate levels, and a g factor at the highest level (e.g., Carroll, 1993;Gustafsson, 1988;Jensen, 1998). A consistent finding of analyses investigating where in the hierarchical structure age-related influences operate is the discovery of significant negative relations of age on the highest-order factor in the structure (e.g., Salthouse, 2004;2005a;Salthouse & Ferrer-Caja, 2003). Moreover, these © 2007 Elsevier Inc. All rights r...

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Section: Results Inmentioning

confidence: 93%

Contextual analysis of fluid intelligence

2008

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“…This test was based on the dot matrix task , which was originally based on the spatial verification task (Law, Morrin, & Pellegrino, 1995). This task has been used as a test of visuospatial WM in a number of studies investigating the structure of WM (Colom, Abad, Rebollo, & Shih, 2005;Colom & Shih, 2004;Law et al, 1995). In our computerized version of the task, participants viewed a matrix equation (see Figure 1) and then verified whether they thought that the equation was true or false by left-clicking a TRUE or FALSE button.…”

Section: Raven's Advanced Progressive Matrices Short Form (Apm-sf)mentioning

confidence: 99%

Assessing the validity of computer-game-like tests of processing speed and working memory

McPherson

Burns

2008

Behavior Research Methods

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“…A possible explanation of these differences may lie in the different tests used to study WM and problem solving. A large part of the studies carried out in this area (see Rabghubar et al, 2010, for a review) have used domainspecific WM tasks-forward and backward digit span, counting span-to assess the executive functioning of the WM, tests that some authors (Colom et al, 2005) have regarded as passive storage. Concerning the tests used to measure mathematical performance, different standardized tests or ad hoc tests and oral (Bull et al, 1999;Fuchs et al, 2006) or written formats (Passolungui & Pazzaglia, 2005;Swanson et al, 2008) have been used habitually, making comparison and generalization of the results obtained difficult.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…31, nº 1 (enero) mathematics from a global viewpoint (Bull et al, 2008;Iglesias-Sarmiento & Deaño, 2011;Mazzocco & Kover, 2007;Toll et al, 2011), without analyzing the specific relation with numerical representation, simple arithmetic, algorithmic calculation, or problem solving. Likewise, the use in most of the studies of measures such as the backward digit span, about which there is some controversy concerning its executive nature (Colom, Abad, Rebollo, & Shih, 2005;Rabhubar, Barnes, & Hecht, 2010), hinders the generalization of results.…”

Section: Wm Updating and Problem Solvingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Updating executive function and performance in reading comprehension and problem solving. [La función ejecutiva de actualización y el rendimiento en comprensión lectora y resolución de problemas]

2015

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Título: La función ejecutiva de actualización y el rendimiento en comprensión lectora y resolución de problemas. Resumen: Esta investigación analizó, en niños de 5º curso de Educación Primaria, la capacidad predictora de la función ejecutiva de actualización de la Memoria Operativa (MO) en las diferencias individuales en comprensión lectora y resolución de problemas aritméticos. Además, se estudió si esta relación es directa o está mediada por variables de dominio general o especí-fico. Con este fin se administró un conjunto de pruebas que evalúan la inteligencia fluida, la actualización de la información en la MO, la competencia aritmética, la resolución de problemas aritméticos, el procesamiento léxico y la comprensión lectora a 49 alumnos con edades comprendidas entre los 10 y 11 años. Los resultados apoyan la idea que la actualización de la MO es un importante predictor de la comprensión lectora, más allá de la influencia de las habilidades de dominio específico y de la inteligencia fluida. En el caso de la resolución de problemas, nuestros hallazgos confirman que la actualización juega un papel importante aunque, en este momento evolutivo, quizá por el propio contenido de la tarea, la relación parece mediada por la inteligencia fluida. Palabras clave: Comprensión lectora; resolución de problemas; funcionamiento ejecutivo; actualización; habilidades de dominio específico; inteligencia fluida. Abstract:In this investigation, the capacity of the working memory (WM) updating executive function to predict individual differences in reading comprehension and problem solving was analyzed in 5th-graders of Primary Education. In addition, we examined whether this relation is direct or mediated by domain-general or domain-specific variables. For this purpose, a series of tasks was administered to assess fluid intelligence, WM information updating, arithmetic abilities, arithmetic problem solving, lexical processing, and reading comprehension in 49 students aged between 10 and 11 years. The results support the idea that updating is an important predictor of reading comprehension, beyond the influence of domainspecific skills and fluid intelligence. In the case of problem solving, our findings confirm that updating plays an important role although, perhaps due to task content, the relation seems to be mediated by fluid intelligence at this developmental stage..

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Memory span and general intelligence: A latent-variable approach

Cited by 146 publications

References 28 publications

Contextual analysis of fluid intelligence

Contextual analysis of fluid intelligence

Assessing the validity of computer-game-like tests of processing speed and working memory

Updating executive function and performance in reading comprehension and problem solving. [La función ejecutiva de actualización y el rendimiento en comprensión lectora y resolución de problemas]

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